TOLA Week 2 Update

The 2011 TOLA sevens season officially kicked off two weeks ago in Denton, TX. In just the third year of hosting the Grand Poobah 7s, Denton continues to prove that their attention to detail and passion for success allows them to rival the quality of some of the most established events in the region. The pitches were excellent, event ran on time, the quality of and depth (24 teams) of competition was fantastic and the social was fun and well attended.

The teams did not disappoint in setting the stage for an intense and competitive TOLA series this Summer. The Austin Huns have made the finals two weeks in a row, last year’s upstart Tyler Lightning has grown to two sides, The Dallas Harlequins are playing very good rugby and are emerging as favorites, The Southside Assassins proved that they can beat anyone on any given day, Shreveport has the physicality and playmaking ability to make some waves, the Dallas Reds are deeper and more organized, the Houston area SPERMS team is legit and appears to have gotten stronger since their strong 2010 campaign and Little Rock’s discipline and athleticism makes them a threat at any tournament and a pleasure to watch. We head to San Antonio this weekend where we expect to see some more of the South Texas teams make their debut and throw their collective hats in the ring.

Denton Results:

The Dallas Harlequins defeated Austin’s El Azul in the final to win the Cup, Little Rock took home the Plate, Tulsa’s Southside Assassins defeated Dallas RFC for the Bowl and The Tyler Bolts (Tyler II) claimed the Shield.

The points system is structured as follows: Each team receives 1 bonus point for each tournament they attend in addition to:

Cup Champion – 6 points

2nd place – 5 points

3rd place – 4 points

4th place – 3 points

Plate Champion – 2 points (depending on tournament format, this could be 3rd place in which case the plate champ receives 4 pts)